Tea Party Saturday November 20
November 15, 2010
Daughters of the King Ladies Tea
Saturday, November 20th, 2pm- 5pm in Ballard Hall
Ladies, please join us, and bring girlfriends and relatives! To add to the festive atmosphere, we encourage you to wear hats.
Gentlemen, please come serve the ladies by waiting tables at the tea. Please arrive by 1:30 on Saturday “dressed to the nines.”
Contact Becky Heerema at daughters@allsaintsanglican.net if you have questions.
Liturgy Lesson for the Twenty-Fourth Sunday after Trinity: Prayer of Humble Access
November 14, 2010
In the Administration of the Holy Communion service, we begin with the Prayer of Humble Access—our humble confession of unworthiness made by the priest on behalf of all approaching the Holy Table. It prepares us to receive the Blessed Sacrament, and in the English prayerbook is very appropriately the last thing done before partaking of the Lord’s Presence in the consecrated elements. It calls us to examen—asking God the Holy Ghost to show us in our hearts where we need repentance—making adjustments in our lives to fit God’s standard, in order to avoid eating or drinking at the Lord’s Table unworthily. This is an important concept, because Scripture teaches us if we have unresolved sin (or their attendant attitudes) in our hearts, we stand more in danger of incurring God’s judgment in communion than in receiving His blessings. After this last spiritual “attitude check” we rightly approach and express our reverent feelings and humility by kneeling, taking the bread in the palm of our hand, not manipulating it with our fingers, but resting in our palms. Likewise, we take the cup firmly, with both hands, embracing Christ’s nature to replace our own, making in our hearts the devotion that St. John Baptist gave us, by praying “More of Him…Less of Me.” No wonder we usually follow with the ancient Gloria in Excelsis—we have received of the Lord completely by His Grace and through no merit of our own—and the pure praise of the Gloria is indeed a fitting response of our heart—“Glory be to God on high!”
Baptism: Immersion in the Holy Spirit
November 12, 2010
Reading: Acts 2:37-39
37Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?”38Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39″For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.”
Baptize comes from a Greek word—baptizo—meaning:
- repeatedly (continuously) dip
- immerse
- submerge (of sailing vessels sunk)
- cleanse by dipping or submerging
- wash
- make clean with water
- wash one’s self
- bathe
- overwhelm
Not to be confused with the shorter word, bapto, the best example of the meaning of baptizo is a text from the Greek poet and physician Nicander, who lived about 200 B.C.
He illustrates this in as a recipe for making pickles–helpful because it uses both words. Nicander says that in order to make a pickle, the vegetable should first be ‘dipped’ (bapto) into boiling water and then ‘baptized’ (baptizo) in the vinegar solution—remaining in it over time for the brine and vinegar solution to take the desired effect.
Both verbs concern the immersing of vegetables in a solution. But the first is temporary. The second, the act of baptizing the vegetable, produces a permanent change. It’s this permanent change the Lord wants and that we need for a victorious life in Him. Anything else is a half-measure…after all, one of the alternate meanings of the word for baptize is to overwhelm—which begs the question, then—overwhelmed by what—or, more properly, Who? The answer, again comes from Jesus’ own words in Holy Scripture:
Acts 1:5 (New American Standard Bible)
”for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
This is the heart of baptism—although the form is important—it helps us guarantee orthodoxy—doing things as Scripture commands, “decently and in order”—the inward and spiritual Grace of Holy Baptism—the real work is done here—accomplished mystically by the Holy Ghost Himself. If we truly have repented—turned away from our old, sinful lives, submitted ourselves to Jesus as Savior and Lord—being as obedient to Him in our hearts as we can—and enter the Sacrament of Baptism in prayer, assembling together—we have every reason to expect a miraculous and personal experience with the Holy Ghost, as He overwhelms our sinful nature by immersing us in Himself…bathing us and sinking our own vessel of self to allow us to be part of the nave (ship)…the Gospel ship He has for us! And like one of the word’s meanings—to bathe oneself, we have to exercise our will to this end. In short we have to decide to do it!
No wonder when this word is used in the New Testament, it refers more to our mystical union and identification with Christ than to our water baptism—a prime example given—Mark 16:16. ‘He that believes and is baptized shall be saved.’
Christ is saying that mere intellectual assent is not enough. There must be a union with Him, a real change, like the vegetable to the pickle!
And, although we only submit to Holy Baptism once—our immersion in the Holy Ghost is never complete…we are commanded to remain immersed in Him, breathing Him in—and being filled by Him, continuously! So we pray and sing in the ancient hymn, ”Veni Spiritus Creator”—come, Holy Ghost—our souls inspire–fill us with celestial fire!
This begs the question, then…are you changed—for good?
Blessings,
Chip+
Liturgy Lesson for the Twenty-Third Sunday after Trinity: The Real Presence
November 7, 2010
We are sometimes asked about the Altar Lamp, also called an Aumbry or Presence Lamp, a red beeswax candle lamp that burns perpetually on the Gospel side of our front parish wall near the Holy Table and facing the nave (where the people sit for worship). This light burns in honor of the Real Presence of our Lord, manifested by His Spirit in the reserve sacrament stored inside the tabernacle—the small, ornate box in the center of the Table. This red light remembers His Blood shed, that He is the Light of the World, and recalls the tongues of fire the Holy Ghost brought on the Church’s birthday at Pentecost. The only time we don’t have this lamp burning there is during Lent, when the reserve sacrament is removed during the Holy Week, after the altar is stripped in observance of our Lord’s Passion during Maundy Thursday evening worship. At that time, the reserve sacrament and altar lamp are moved together in a special and deeply-moving procession to an altar of repose where His faithful stand vigil around the clock until it is returned to the tabernacle, just prior to Easter Sunday’s Resurrection celebration. If you notice the lamp has gone out, tell the Altar Guild or clergy immediately, in order to re-light it. Our use of this, and candles of all kinds, links us with the ancient Church and its holy worship—reminding us of a time when the Church had to meet in secret, usually at night, to avoid persecution. We use beeswax—a sweet-smelling and expensive fuel, according to the ancient custom of only burning it for the most significant occasions and/or to honor very important visitors—in this case, the King of Kings! As with all our practice, this is derived from Scripture—notably, Ex 25:30; 35:13-15; Lev 24:1-3; St. John 1:5; 6:58 and 2 Cor 4:6. We honor Your Presence, Lord!
Road Map for Life by Father Ed Morgan
November 5, 2010
Funny how life unfolds. We can find value in things and people that is so unexpected.
I started taking a memory look at my life and was surprised by some of those memories. One of them was the event of finding a Bible I had received when I was 5 1/2 years old.
As I looked at this forgotten, lost book, I began to remember when I received it. I attended a VBS with my neighbor Keith, and his grandfather gave me the Bible for a graduation gift. He was very serious man, yet, in that Bible he put a crisp new $2 silver certificate. I remembered that when I dug the Bible out of the trash. As I was flipping through it there was that silver certificate. Talk about finding a treasure that was lost but now found. I think God had a call on my life at a very young age and I was too busy being something else. As time went on I had other encounters with God’s call but still could not see.
I remember watching a movie entitled A Man Called Peter, about God’s call on his life. What an example of heroic men standing forth to do God’s bidding. Peter had a mission from the “Boss” as he called God. Being a good Scotsman, Peter rolled up his sleeves and started the process to become one of the foremost influential ministers at the beginning of the 20th Century. His prayers influenced the nation’s leaders and lawmakers. His simple way of understanding and explaining the Scriptures to people changed lives, yet he was always honest to the scriptures.
Reinhold Neihbur created a simple prayer that is found in part everywhere in the world. We know this prayer as the Serenity Prayer. Not bad for a couple of Texas boys from the Geronimo-Seguin area. His brother was no slouch in the theological department either. We are still benefiting from their knowledge of God.
Who could forget Leon Jaworski in his epic role as special prosecutor in the Watergate trial? Leon was a member of Frieden’s E&R Church in Geronimo Texas. He set the standards for many of today’s attorneys.
One day I was leading a home group for study and asked the question, “Who do you credit with bringing you to Christ?” My daughter-in-law pointed at me. I tell you this NOT to point out me, but to forearm you. I did not believe I was having any effect on anyone in the group, and I was absolutely shocked—pleased but shocked.
Now, let me explain exactly what I mean.
WATCH WHAT YOU DO, SAY, ACT, AND READ OR VIEW AS SOME ONE IS WATCHING YOU AND THEY ARE MAKING DECISIONS BASED ON YOUR ACTIONS. THEY WILL FIND VALUE IN UNEXPECTED PLACES.
You are the heroes today for people to look back at from tomorrow. Be sure you are the hero God wants you to become. Amen.
Get to church at the right time on Sunday, November 7: Set your clocks back
November 3, 2010
November Is a Time to Celebrate Thankful Days
November 1, 2010
Becky Hereema and her family have a wonderful Thanksgiving tradition that they began when their children were young. The tradition helps put the holiday into perspective and focuses their family’s on the blessings they have been given by God.
“Thankful Days began when my older kids were 5 and 3. Their birthdays are in the Fall, followed immediately by many holidays. We began doing something each day from November 1st until Thanksgiving Day to try and focus on how very blessed we are and how we can bless others. We focus on God, country, and family. We try to do activities and do-without days that generate wonderful discussions when we all come back together at dinner each night. As the kids mature, and our stations change (Air Force family), the calendar evolves. Hopefully other folks will keep their copy of the Thankful Days Calendar and tweak it to fit their family,” Becky explained.
